Waking Up (15 page)

A little too much information for a couple I just met, but I’ll store what he said in my mind.  Books are good for sex.

Hmm?

“Grubs on!”  Adriana belts out.  A round of “Yee-haws” goes around.  No shitting.  They all shout “yee-haw” like they’re from Texas or something.  I’m having so much fun caught up in the moment, I shout, “Yee-haw!” back at them.  Beers and wine glasses are raised at me and everyone starts converging on the food.  I don’t know where to start.  It all looks and smells so good.

Forming my plan of attack, I start at one end of the table and work to the other grabbing a little of everything.  Eyebrows raise in my direction and I pray I can eat it all without getting sick.

“Big appetite,” I say, shrugging my shoulders as I sit next to Adriana.  I don’t think it goes un-noticed by anyone.  There were other seats I could have chosen.  Problem is, I hadn’t talked to her much all night and I miss being near her.  Is it possible to miss someone you just met?  If so, then that's how I feel.  I need to be near her for a little while.

When
Addicted
by Saving Abel starts playing, the irony of the song hits me full blast.  That’s it.  I’m addicted to this woman.

“You didn’t have to take everything, you know,” Adriana says, nudging me with her shoulder.  That one touch sends pulses of electricity through my whole side.  “There’ll be plenty of leftovers.”

Feeling shy for the first time since I met her, I think I actually blush.  “It all looked so good.”  I give her an impish grin.

“Just don’t make yourself sick, okay?  And don’t forget, there’s still dessert.”  She smiles at my groan.

I can feel six pairs of eyes watching our every move.  Six pairs of ears listening to everything we say.  But, when I look up, they quickly go about talking to each other.

Over dinner everyone talks about their jobs.  Kale talks about how he’s trying to make partner at the architecture firm he’s at.  Deidre looks at him with such love and pride on her face it makes me yearn for someone to look at me that way.  I’ve never had a relationship with that intensity before.  Feeling Adriana stiffen next to me, I wonder if Kale works for the firm Alex owned or if just the mention of architecture is enough to upset her.

Preston and Blake talk about a new residential development they’ll be starting in a few weeks.  I learned earlier in the evening that Blake is a foreman at Preston’s construction company.  A damn good one from what Preston told me.  I want to ask if they’ll be using Alex’s designs, but I keep quiet.

As I sit with Adriana and her friends stuffing my face, listening to them tell work stories, talk about Kale and Deidre’s kids, neighborhood tales, I have to stop myself several times from placing my hand on Adriana’s thigh or pushing her hair behind her ear.  Things couples would do.  Her friends are all so affectionate with each other and I feel so comfortable with her already.  Her friends, too.  This is getting complicated way too fast.

They all treat me like… like I’m normal.  What do I do with that?

Alahna asks Adriana if she’s ready for the wedding they’ll be photographing Saturday.  Apparently this is the biggest bridezilla they’ve had yet.  Them saying “bridezilla” makes me think of her in her kitchen along with lots of other things I shouldn’t be thinking at this particular moment.  Man, I don’t remember these jeans being so tight.

“Hey, Adri,” Deidre says. “You never told us how Tucker came to be your guest tonight.”  My head snaps up.  I’m inspecting Blondie looking for the motive behind her questioning, but she’s smiling, no hidden agenda.   A friend asking a simple question.  Funny how one simple question changes the atmosphere.  I’m suddenly not hungry anymore and push my plate away from me.

Next to me, Adriana starts tapping her foot and her legs start bouncing nervously.  I give in to the impulses I’ve had all night and give her knee a quick squeeze.  A quick nod is all I can give her without making it obvious that there’s something going on.  I want to answer for her, but am afraid of her friends’ reactions. So, I sit and wait for her to work through her nerves.

“Well you see… uh… Tu-Tucker isn’t ju-just my guest for tonight.  He’s going to be staying here until his show resumes taping in a few weeks.”  She says all of this without looking away from her plate.  Without looking at me or any of her friends.  Oh, shit.

Bomb dropped.

I never thought there was so much sound in silence before. In those few moments before detonation, I swear I could hear everyone’s heart beat speed up, all their throats swallowing, their brains thinking of the best responses.  It was defeaning.  Silence took on a new meaning.  A new sound to me.  Then, BOOM!

“Are you crazy?”

“You don’t invite a stranger to stay with you!”

“He’s a fucking movie star, Adri!  You know what they’re like!”  
Ouch.  That hurt.
 

“Have you officially lost your mind?”

“I know it’s been hard for you lately, but, sweetie, you need to think this through.”

I’m not even sure who is saying what the comments are coming so fast and furious.  They are all talking over each other and Adriana has buried her head into her hands partially covering her ears.  I squeeze her knee again.  Partly to offer her support, but I have to admit partly because I want to touch her again.  To feel the electricity that goes through me every time I come in contact with her.

When her head snaps up, I pull my hand back.  The pissed off look on her face has me worried.  Maybe touching her wasn’t a good idea.

Jumping to a standing position, surprising everyone, Adriana screams, “ENOUGH!”  She’s breathing heavy, her face red, trembling a little, and has her hands on the table to steady her.  Anger is wafting off her in waves and I know I don’t want to be on the receiving end of it ever, but all I can think is I’m so damn proud of her.  Six people are yelling at her.  And this five-foot-nothing, tiny woman is standing up to all of them, looking like a tigress stalking her prey.  Fearless.  One word and she effectively shut them all up.  Yep.  Damn proud.

“I am not a child.  I can invite whoever the hell I damn well please to stay in my house whenever I want to.  I didn’t call my mother for permission so I sure as hell wasn’t calling any of you to ask.”  Venom drips from the words and I feel terrible that she is talking so nastily to her friends.  Yeah, they yelled at her, but it was from a place of concern, caring.

They start to protest, but she holds one hand up and gives them all a look.  A look that says– if you say one word, you might as well leave.  They all remain quiet.  I want to say, “That’s my girl! Give ‘em hell!” But she’s not my girl and I’m not sure her friends should be getting reamed out too badly.

“How Tucker got here is his story to tell,” she says looking at me with a weak smile.  “When he’s ready to tell you, that’s up to him, but after how you all just acted, I wouldn’t blame him if he’s never comfortable enough to say anything.  The decision I made is the right one.  I have the space and our little town is nowhere on the paparazzi radar so he can relax for the next few weeks.  Like it or don’t.  My decision is final!”

I can picture her stomping her foot and I’m totally turned on.  She has no idea how hot she is.  Not for the first time tonight, I find my jeans restraining.

“Kid,” Preston starts, “What would Al…”

“Don’t you dare, Pres,” she spits at him.  “Not you.  You of all people are not allowed to ask me what Alex would think.”  

At the collective sound of gasps going around, Adriana glares at her friends, looking at them in irritation.  “Aww for Christ’s sake, guys, he already knows I have a dead husband.”  I don’t think they’re mouths could have dropped any lower.  “Think about it.  There are pictures all over my house.  I wear a wedding ring,” she says lifting her left hand in a huff.

That one act makes my heart ache.  The wedding ring
he
gave her.  That she still can’t take off.  Because she still loves him too much.

“But, since you asked, Pres,  Alex would have taken him in too because he was the best of all of us.”  Her voice catches, but she holds her ground.  “Now, I expect all of you to apologize to my guest and I expect you to damn mean it or you can leave.”  She looks like all the fight has gone out of her.

“Adriana, your friends have the right to be concerned about you,” I say quickly, struggling to find my voice.

“They don’t have the right to be rude,” she snaps back.  Looking and pointing at each of her friends, she says, “Apologize.  Now.”

I was wrong.  She’s fierce.  I’m filled with pride again for my tiny warrior.  No, not mine.  I need to stop seeing her this way.  When she smiles at me I’m unable to stop myself from smiling back.  Somehow in just a matter of hours this woman has found a place in my life.  I’ll be damned if I know what to do with it.

Feeling eyes bore into the back of my head, I turn to the right and fall into the icy stare of Alahna’s blue eyes.  It feels like she’s peering into my soul, but I can’t look away.  And she can see her friend has gotten under my skin.  Not ready to fully admit this to myself, I’ll be damned if I’ll admit it to the one person who’s hated me since I stepped on the scene.

Mustering up another smile I know she’ll shoot down, I nearly pass out from surprise when one side of her mouth lifts up.  It’s more of a smirk than a smile.  A look that says she knows something I don’t, but I’ll take it.

Alahna, shocking me, apologizes first followed by the rest.  Seeming to be satisfied by the apologies given, Adriana sits back down, but she doesn’t continue eating.  I have a feeling she’s lost her appetite, too.

Dinner is quiet for a while, nothing like it was before the bomb of my stay here was dropped.  I should tell Adriana that I’m leaving in the morning, but after how she just defended me to her friends, I’m afraid I’ll hurt her.  And the last thing I want to do is hurt her.

And you don’t want to leave.
  My conscience nags at me.  No, I don’t want to leave, but I know I have to because I’m already feeling this invisible force pushing me toward her.  I try not to watch her, but my eyes seek her out of their own accord.  I try not to listen for her, but I’m tuned into the tone of her voice and her laughter and her sexy little snorts.  In a few hours, I find myself yearning for her.  This is happening much too soon.  It’s crazy.

Leave yourself open to possibilities.
  What Grams said keeps coming back to me at odd times throughout the evening and Eddie telling me I’m a good guy.  It’s fucking with my head.  Making me want things I shouldn’t.  With a girl who is totally wrapped up in her dead husband still.  Just proves Eddie is wrong about me.  A good guy wouldn’t be thinking of the several ways I want to take Adriana while I sit here with her friends that took a reaming because of me.  I wouldn’t be wishing for them to leave so I can possibly get her naked knowing I plan to leave in the morning.  And, a good guy would have made Grams life a lot easier than I did all the years she raised me.  I’m not a good guy.  Never have been.  Eddie’s wrong.

I’m.  Not.  A.  Good.  Guy.

I need to leave here before I hurt her more than she already is.  I never should have agreed to stay.  She wouldn’t have this tension with her friends right now.  It’s so wrong and it’s all my fault.  It’s always my fault.

Maybe this time I can fix it.  Do one thing right before I leave.

“How did you all meet?”  I don’t recognize my voice.  I meant to ask the question.  One, to get the conversation going again and, two, because I’m genuinely curious.  They appear to love each other like they’ve known each other their whole lives, but life isn’t all rainbows and ponies.  Groups this size don’t tend to stay together that long.  The smile that curves Adriana’s lips knocks every bit of air from my lungs.  I thought I had seen her smile earlier, but she had been holding back.  This smile she gives now as she looks around at all her friends is truly the smile of an angel.  Heaven is shining through her face and if I were standing, I would have been dropped to my knees.  God, this girl is beautiful.

After a small conversation, they all agree that Adriana should tell the tale of meeting because she’s somehow involved in all of them.  A little more discussion ensues before her angelic face meets mine and she begins.  The excitement from everyone is infectious and I’m glad for the tension relieving conversation I thought of.

“It started back when we were young.  Like, infancy,” she muses.  “Preston and Alex were best friends pretty much in utero because their moms were best friends who lived next door to each other.”  No wonder he saw me as an instant threat.  He sees me as the guy moving in on his best friend’s girl.  “I met them both the first day of first grade and we all became inseparable.”  Another angelic smile graces her face.  She’s lost for a minute in a memory, but not one that leaves her looking vacant.  One that leaves her radiant.  Happy.  “We were inseparable through grade school, junior high, high school, and even went to the same college.  The thought of leaving each other to go to school never even occurred to us.  We just knew where one went, all three of us would go.  My freshman year of college I met Alahna in our Introduction to Photography class.  I liked her right away.  So did Preston when he saw her, so I introduced them.”

“Scariest and best day of my life,” Preston says with a huge grin on his face.  Alahna sits on his lap and gives him a kiss on his cheek.

“I thought our wedding day was the scariest and best day of your life,” she teases him.

“It’s a toss-up,” he throws back, wrapping his arms tightly around her.  Everyone chuckles.  I know I must be missing something, but I’m guessing this is a story for another time.

Adriana seems so content watching her friends that I think she won’t continue, but then her eyes meet mine and it dawns on her that she’s in the middle of a story.  Watching a little “o” form on her lips makes me want to grab onto her face and kiss her, push my tongue into the opening of her lips.  “Well, you can see that Alahna and Preston hit it off.  It took them a little while, but that’s a story for another time.”